Creative Writing

There’s an old saying that goes, “The most a story can do is surprise.” Of course, it should do more than deliver a few cheap ‘Jack-in-the-box’ moments. It must entertain, move the audience, and deliver a satisfying ending. But, if you are going to plan…

This post is about three flawed protagonists, why they became so popular, and what we can learn from them. A normal protagonist can be painted with the broadest strokes to appeal to the largest audience. Often, they are written for the very young or the…

GUEST POST We all like the idea of making people laugh with our stories. But it’s never easy. Here are a few practical thoughts about how to increase your humour quotient in your writing. I know what you’re thinking. Who are you to tell me…

Do you want to write a screenplay? This post is about the magic of screenwriting and why this may be the perfect place for writers to start. Lights! Camera! Action! [This post is an excerpt taken from our brand-new course, The Script.] Movies will always…

Janet Evanovich is a best-selling American author who was born 22 April 1943. She began her career writing romance novels under the pen name Steffie Hall, but she became well-known as the author of the Stephanie Plum series. She has two hundred million books in print worldwide and her books…

As bright-eyed new screenwriters who have just cracked open a shiny Apple MacBook and installed the latest version of Final Draft, you can’t wait to make your mark as a screenwriter. Reality Before Creativity You sit in your favourite coffee shop with a double almond…

Haikus are rather mysterious as far as poems go. At least, I always thought so and because we spent most of last month counting syllables, I thought we could look at Haikus and keep counting - to 17 as it were. Also, because today is…

The settings in our memoir must feel real. Readers must be able to visualise that world and see us in our surroundings. If it does not seem real, the book isn’t working. In memoir, we are re-creating a world, and the best way to make…

Actors use method acting to become better at their jobs. Writers can use method writing to become better at theirs. From Method Acting To Method Writing Writers create the characters that actors play. It makes sense therefore to create a character the same way an…

In this Poetry 101 post, I want to talk about the creation of figurative language by using literary devices. Have you ever wondered how poets create those beautiful, those rhythmic lines that create pictures and conjure up new meanings using what seem to be ordinary…